I found the app this morning, gave it a try, upgraded almost immediately. I've been struggling with video quality on the TV with a paywall education site LearningHerbs untill I found this app. Made the well made videos on the site play beautifully.

Thank you!

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Carlos Solorzano: Might not be supported on chromecast built in then, not too surprising considering all the things that don't work there.

Mike Creuzer: Playback in beta doesn't support playback speed on the Wistia video. Didn't get a chance to test your link, the kids kicked me off the TV.

Carlos Solorzano: Let me know on that video so I can file an issue with Google.

I went on a quick overnighter in 20 degree weather. My pack weighed out at 17lbs including food and water. When I weighed it when I got home it was 13lbs. I had nearly 3.5lbs of electronics that much of had migrated to my coat pockets. My skin out weight was 26.4 lbs when I got home (no water, half the food eaten).

I tried several layers of space blanket type tech to keep warm. It did OK. Cold going to bed. Once I padded all the cold spots, it worked OK. I had to break out the hot-hands and shove them into my wool mittens and put those on my feet. It's odd getting out of the hammock at 1am to find your feet had thumbs!

The temp according to my new WeatherFlow Weather Meter was 21.7 degrees at 1:45 in the morning.

I took a pile of thermal images looking at how we keep warm and where heat leaks out. Nothing overly surprising. Cold spots tend to mean a greater temperature exposed to the environment where it radiates out and becomes visible to the camera.

My home made buff/neck scarf was a big win. I won't be backpacking without one of those as it just made my short list.

I tried out a LOT of new gear this trip. My clothes (except the new buff) and the rain fly where the only gear that has been on a prior trip. The big surprise was the ground cloth I made for my air mattress. It held the mattress in place in the hammock surprisingly well. So well, I will make another without the grommets as I don't think they are necessary and thus can cut some weight.

Dan G.: Thanks for the IR photos; keep those coming. :)Might buy yourself a better hat next outing. A Balaclava is a face saver on a night like that. I may try ski goggles on my next deep freeze outing.

I recently picked up a Seek Thermal camera which plugs into my cell phone and allows me to see temperatures of stuff. It's a cheap unit, so it doesn't have the built in calibration tables that the expensive 'real' test equipment has. But it's good enough for most people's needs in a non-technical use.

I am reading all up on emissivity, and the science of how it works. Because this influences my usage of my laser cutter, and blacksmithing and even cooking and anything that relies on heat.

So I decided I am going to make a Mobile Science set. Mobile is dual usage, one, it's portable, two it's centered around my mobile phone.

My phone has a lot of sensors and capabilities already.

The Seek Thermal camera gives the phone another super power.

I also want to add a Consumer Physics SCiO https://www.consumerphysics.com/myscio/ which is a molecular identifier. I've wanted this thing since they ran it on kickstarter several years ago. I have actually seen it work in person and absolutely love what it can do. I think it will turn out to be a disruptive technology. This item will be the primary tool in my Mobile Science lab once I get one.

To compliment these two IR different sensors, I want an assortment of basic hand tools that will facilitate in preparing materials for the phone accessories.

I will be working with botany and geology. Also a bit of chemistry.

Optics is a pretty natural option too, given the camera on the phone. I will be making some bead lens microscope adapters for the cell phone camera. A spectrograph as well.

I also found a phone accessory weather sensor that I will be picking up.

I made up a cardboard tray on my laser cutter to organize the few bits I have gathered already. These are fitting in a waterproof cell phone case. I am looking for a waterproof tablet case.

My goal is to have a solid Science Lab the size of a Science textbook. I will likely carry this set about anywhere I go.

I am crazy excited about this idea.

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Mike Creuzer: Any ideas or suggestions for what else I should add?

Tim Cunningham: I don't have any suggestions. But I think Batman and any self respecting mad scientist would be jealous of your set up. Keep us posted I would be interested in adding a few of these things for when I'm out and about working in the parks.

Mike Creuzer: I ordered a weather sensor last night. Wind speed, temp, humidity. I didn't see a barometer on it. Nearly got the science of meteorology covered when combined with a good weather app.

I've been looking at them, and just can't really spend $20-30 on something I am not sure I would like.

They seem like a nice multi-purpose item, right up there with a cotton bandanna. A lot of overlap in uses actually. Effectively a synthetic bandanna.

I've done some cold nights in the hammock (3f in my book) and keeping your face out of your sleeping bag so your breath doesn't dampen it can get cold on the cheeks.

I made a Buff at 3am this morning. I couldn't sleep. I had finally bought some fabric yesterday to make some gaiters (Dirtygirl gaiters style) and a matching buff. $1.97 for a yard of jerseyknit (maybe? stretchy in one way) poly-something. The labels aren't very good at Walmart. I've enough fabric for a couple of sets of both Buffs and Gaiters. That match!

It's an easy enough project. A few minutes on the sewing machine using the zig-zag stitch so the fabric can still stretch. I cut the fabric 18 inches square. Sew it up so it can stretch to get bigger around so it will stretch over your head.

I found that 18 inches around (minus sewing allowance) is maybe a tad tight for me. For sure I will be making the next one longer, as I can't double this and use it as a beanie over my big head. The 21 inches left over from the part I cut off the yard of fabric ought to be just about right.

I've been wearing it since I made it. I slept with it, but it somehow came off in the middle of the night (sleep undressing?). I've been wearing it all day. I usually don't like things around my neck, but it hasn't bothered me unless I think about it.

Just wondering if anybody has had any experience with the real thing. I would expect a seamless one would be significantly better than my hack-job.

Mike Creuzer: +Brian Roosa If you have any skill with a sewing machine (or can ask of somebody who does), make one. It's actually a pretty easy project. I've been wearing mine around the house all day and like it.

Brian R: I can sew. What material did you use?

Mike Creuzer: +Brian Roosa From what I read, you want what's called a "Jersey Knit" - like tshirt material. The 'real' ones are made on a Jersey Knit Loom, so they have a continuous tube of fabric.

Honestly, I just walked down the isle at Wallmart with my hands out touching everything and tugging at the soft feeling stuff.

Knowledge doesn't add any weight to your pack. So here is a look at how a camp stove heats up.

I just picked up a thermal camera and am starting to investigate the energies (thermodynamics, not Reiki) around my camping gear. Energy sources are heavy to carry around, so if I can maximize the utilization of what I do carry, I think I can have a more comfortable trip. I plan on looking at EVERYTHING. Cooking, clothing, shelters.

While I knew that shiny metals are heat reflective, and anodized metals are heat absorptive. It really doesn't sink in until you can see it and play with it.

Some of the cooking related things I want to test are different types of stoves, post cooking coozies, wind screens as part of the part warming process.

What else should I look into? What do you want to see? How should I format my tests so they are actually meaningful when read?

Anybody in the Chicago area (or passing through at any time) and want to take a look at YOUR gear?

This is the Seek Thermal Compact. Open Box from Amazon.com. Plugs into a cell phone. Flir has a new unit coming out mid year. Wait for that unit, I think it will be MUCH better and is about the same price.

I also tried using some dry moly lube as an engraving agent. This also works well. The laser can't touch metal, the metal acts like a mirror unless much more powerful than I have. ﻿

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Mad Tinker: Interesting. I thought I understood this but I'm going to have to go back to the books. Thanks!

Mike Creuzer: I can't find a reference as to exactly what is happening to the molybdenum disulfide. I don't know if I am sintering it to the surface or if the heat from the laser is speeding up the atom swapping and I am effectively creating an alloy at the surface.